The invention relates to a dispensing device for dispensing liquid from a container which has a top, a bottom and a side wall and on the bottom of which a dispensing device, by means of which liquid can be dispensed in a convenient manner from the container, is accommodated.
Various dispensing devices are known in the art for what are known as party kegs which usually have a filling volume of 5 or 10 liters and are generally filled with beer.
A simple solution is a dispensing tap which is attached laterally to the bottom of the body of the keg and through which the beverage can be removed. In this case, the liquid is removed from the container as a result of the inherent gravity pressure (cf. WO 99/31010). However, this requires an additional opening for the compensation of pressure in the container, as otherwise the reduced pressure produced in the container would prevent liquid from running out. The pressure compensation, which is thus produced as a result of ambient air flowing in, soon leads to a loss of quality in carbonated beverages or beverages which are sensitive to oxidation.
In order to avoid this drawback, the container can be placed under a constant internal pressure which is independent of the filling level (cf. for example EP 1 642 861 A1 and WO 2005/007560 A2). In this case, the internal pressure prevailing in the container allows the position of the dispensing tap on the container to be freely selected.
These solutions have the drawback of an arrangement of the dispensing device that is provided on the upper side of the container, as this makes the containers less easy to stack.
Although it is also known in the art to accommodate the dispensing device submerged between the top of the container and the peripheral outer edge (cf. U.S. Pat. No. 2,134,852), the known solution is very costly and complex.